Merry-go-round.



PATENTED AUG. l5, 1905.

B. KIPPELS..

MERRY-G0-ROUND APPLICATION NLED MAY 27, 1904.

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lll'o. 797,439.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented .lfugz l5, 1905.

Application filed May 27,1904. Serial No. 210.051.

To rtl/f whom 'if/2 'Irl/ay oon/cern:

v e it known that l, Benno liirrnns, a citizen of the United States, residing` at l\'loorhead in the county of Clay and State of lvlinnesota, have made certain new and useful lmproveinents in Merry-('o-ltounds, of which the `following is a specification.

lll/ly invention is an improvement in whatare variously termed merry-go-rounds, ca-

77 L f 9 Y rousels, and roundabouts. itis more particularly an improvement upon the machine or apparatus `for which l have obtained Letters Patent No. 698,294.

lli/'ly invention embodies several im provements, as hereinafter specified, and illustrated in the accornl'ianying drawings, in whichevliigure l is a perspective view of the apparatus or machine as in use. Fig. 2 is aside View of a portion of the propelling mechanism. Fig. 2 is a side view of a ratchet formingI part of the propelling mechanism. Fig. 3 is a vertical central section illustrating the upper and lower bearings on the central lined post. Fig. et is a sectional view of one of the pedal attachments. lfig. 5 is a section illustrating a bearing for the pedal bar or rod.

A foundation-post l is set vertical in the ground, and upon it is supported an iron post 2, the same extending' to the requisite height to afford a support ifor the revolvingl portion of the apparatus. A collar 3 (see Figs. land 2) is secured to the upper portion of the post 2, and a socket-wheel a is arranged above the same and supported by ball-bearings 5, so as to run with minimum friction. ln the sockets of part 4 is supported a series of radial arms 6, from whose outer ends seats 7 7 are suspended by means of bifurcated rods 8, as in my former invention. The seats 7 are adapted to support a number of persons; but the seat 7 is adapted for one person orily--tliat is to say, the operator who propels the entire revoluble part. As indicated in Fig. il, the wheel 4c is provided with pendent iianges, between which the bars G are arranged, the latter being` secured by bolts 9. Above said wheel i is arranged a bevel-gear 10, the same being secured or fixed to the post 2. The pro pelling mechanism is engaged with this gear l0, as will now be described. A shaft A11 (see Fig. l) is arranged directly above one of the radial bars G and supported in bearings 12 and 13, which are in the natureI of brackets, the same being provided with base- Iianges and securely bolted to the bars l5. The inner end of the shaft lll is provided with a bevelliinion lli, which engages the gear i0. ,lt is apparent that if the shaft ll1 he rotated the entire motor part of the apparatus will be carried around the post 2. in my Yformer invention l en'iployed for this purpose a gearing and pedal-bars which were so constructed and connected that the pedal-bars were constantly reeiproeated. ln the present invention l have adoijitcd suoli a construction and combination of parts that the pedal-bars are at rest save when the operator is actively propelling the apparatus. 'lhedetails are as follows: 'lhe brackets i3, before referred to,

are extended horizontally, and in their outer ends a double crank-shaftl is provided with bearings. To the opposite cranks of this shaft the pedal-bars lo are pivotall)v atnlched. lUpon the central portion of the crank-shaft l5 is keyed a driving spur-gear li, which meshes with a driven gear 18, mom'ited loose on the shaft 1l. Adjacent to such gear it is arranged a sleeve i9. (see lfigs. l. L), 22) having inclined teeth formed on its inner end and secured to the shaft l1 by a clamii-bolt Q0. Pawls E21 (see lfigs. l and 2) are pivote/.l to the loose gear i8 and provided with springs which serve to hold them norinalli engaged with the teeth of sleeve lil. ,lhe pedal bars or rods lf3 are provided with pedals proper, 16". ',lchese are adapted for vertical adjustment, the same being secured to the rods i6 b v means of clamp-bolts le", arranged in slots, as shown in Figs. l and -l-. it] applying pressure alternately to the opposite pedals '16 the rods 16 will be reciprocated and the crank-shaft l5 rotated. 'lhe direction of rop tation is .indicated by the arrow in lfig. l, and

the loose gear i8 on the drive-shaft ll will obviously be driven in an opposite direction or forward, whereby its pawls 2l, engage the toothed sleeve lil, and the shaft lol will be driven in the same direction as the gear it, and thus the entire revoluble part of the apparatus, consisting mainlyY of rotatable bars b and the suspended seats 'i and i, will be driven around the central post it. When a sullicient speed has been attained and theopH crater desires Yfor this or any other reason to cease propnlsive effort, it is apparent that the bars 'In may hangl motionless Vfrom the crank-shaft l5, since the gear I8 will run backward on the shaft 1,1., its pavvls in such case riding over sleeve 1S). liv this simple construction and combination of parts lY am enabled to Connect the primary driving or crank shaft 15 with shaft lll 1n such a manner that when a due speed has been attained it will not be reduced by the gravity of the outer or pedal bars when the operator ceases propulsive elort. I thus avoid a serious objection to the merry-go-rounds of this class, and especially to that covered by my aforesaid patent.

The seati is supported upon parallel bars 22, and these in turn are connected with parallel bars 23, the two sets ot' bars 22 23 being arranged at rightangles to each other and duly spaced apart. Each ot' the bars is provided with a lengthwise slot, and clamp-bolts 24 are inserted through coincident slots for securing the two sets ot' bars together in any required adjustment. The front ends ot' the bars 23 are provided with slots adapted to receive the pedal-rods i6 and also to provide space for anti friction-rollers 25, (see Fig. 5,) so that the rods 16 work vertically with minimum t'riction. It will be seen that the slots in the bars 22 23 permit the bars 23 to be adjusted nearer each other or 'farther apart and also to be adjusted forward. By said adjustments the said bars 23 may be placed a distance apart and projected forward, according to the size and convenience or' the operator. The entire seatsupport T 22 23 is loosely connected with the revolving` rigid portion of the frame by means of a link or rod 26, (see Fig. 1,) so that the operator is not swung outward by centrifugal action, as is the case with the occupants of seats Tit. Y

rlhe radial bars 6, from which the seats are suspended, are supported by diagonal braces 6, and the lower ends ot' the latter are slotted and secured to lugs 27, (see Fig. 3,) forming an integral portion of a revolving base 28. The latter is constructed as a bevel-gear and rests upon ball-bearings 29, so it may rotate easily around the post 2. It is constructed as a gear to provide for attachment of a driving-gear for the purpose of propelling the apparatus by motor of any suitable kind should this at any time be desirable or practicable. The bars 6 and braces 6a are connected by vertical bars 6b, the same being' arranged close to the post 2 and duly secured by screw-bolts to the bars 6 6a.

By the above-described construction, arrangement, and combination of parts l form a merry-go-round which is distinguished by maximum strength, lightness, and ease of propulsion. lt may be produced at small cost and easily set up or removed.

That I claim is The combination, with a central post and a gear fixed thereon, a series of radial arms attached to a member adapted to revolve around said post, ot' a series of seats suspended from said arms, one of them formed of cross-bars arranged at right angles to each other and provided with lengthwise slots, clampingbolts passing through said slots, verticallyreciprocating ped al-bars forming a part of the propelling mechanism and arranged in suitable guides in two ot' the aforesaid cross-bars, substantially as described.

BRUNO KIPPELS. iVitnesses:

Guo. F. FULLER, FRED LnvITRE. 

